Only Sharifs go home?

In Pakistan, only ‘Sharifs’ (honourable) individuals go home and the badmaash (dishonourable) stick and flourish. It reminds me of a story from SaadiSherazi’s famous Hikayat (moral stories). There was a habitual thief but despite several warnings he did not stop. Finally, the town’s people decided to shave his head off, blacken his face and sent him on a donkey ride across the town for all to see. It was hoped the punishment would make an impact but, on his return, he remarked he had had a fun, free head shave and donkey ride.

In order to put all speculations to rest, General Raheel Sharif, the Chief of Army Staff (COAS), has clearly indicated that he will go home on the expiry of his term in November this year. He is the first head of the armed forces after General WaheedKakar who will complete his constitutional time limit. General JehangirKaramat was sacked by Prime Minister (PM) Sharif while General Pervez Musharraf captured PM Sharif and became the head of state himself. General Pervez Kayani stayed for six years before handing over command.

In Quaid’s Pakistan, sharafat (honour) was clearly defined and understood while in Abba Ji’s, it is deliberately confused. Quaid and his followers defended their honour at all costs. Ulaima (finger pointing) was taken very seriously. Conflict of interest was avoided. Politics meant service to the people, not loot and plunder of their assets. They believed in giving not taking. Even tea was not served in cabinet meetings.

By contrast,Abba Ji believed that every person has a price: find it, pay it and get your job done. Honour, ethics, morality, rules and regulations are considered irrelevant; only the bottom line was important. The term mukmukka was introduced and practiced. It was rumoured that General Asif Nawaz Janjua was invited to dinner and then offered a BMW car as a gift. Upon his refusal their relationship was strained. When Ishaq Khan dismissed the government of Mian Sahib, he alleged that the general had been poisoned.

Unfortunately, in our times,honour has been linked with weakness as odds are very unfavourable. Honourable individuals quietly go home to protect their reputation or sharafat instead of fighting back the evil. At the time of independence in 1947 the country was in the safe hands of very able and honest individuals who, despite challenges, performed to the best of their abilities. There was merit and rule of law. The evil component of society was contained while today it has managed to come to the top.

Abdul Hafiz Kardar, the person who brought Pakistan on the world cricket map, did not assist his best friend and cycle companion to be selected in the team against merit. Then, as education minister of Punjab, he lived in his own rented apartment and used his personal car to go to the office. After the election debacle of 1977 he advised Zulfikar Ali Bhutto to immediately go for re-elections. When Bhutto did not follow his advice he resigned and went home with his honour intact. There were no cases or charges of corruption against him.

Recently,SahibzadaYakub Ali Khan passed away at the age of 95. In 1971, as head of the eastern command in East Pakistan he refused military action and advised the GHQ to seek a political solution. He was stripped off his rank and called back to be replaced by General Tikka Khan and then General A KNiazi. Quaid’s Pakistan was dismembered as a result of this military adventurism. Again, in the 1980s, he wanted a total solution to the Afghan war with the return of refugees and formation of a consensus government in Kabul to avoid chaos. In utter short sightedness he was removed as foreign minister. People like him laid the foundations of this country that have been weakened by the unscrupulous leadership imposed on the nation.

Operation Zarb-e-Azab is perhaps the most important front on which the nation has embarked under the able and honest leadership of General Raheel Sharif. The Pakistan army has produced both villains (Ayub Khan, Yahya Khan, ZiaulHaq, Pervez Musharraf) and heroes (Aziz Bhatti, Shabir Sharif, AsifJanjua, WaheedKakar, JehangirKaramat etc.). In the 1965 war, it is widely believed that it was the change of command (GeneralAkhtar to GeneralYahya) that prevented the capture of Jammu. In the US, a wartime president has never lost an election as he is the commander-in-chief. Franklin D Roosevelt was paralysed yet he was given a third term to finish what he had started. Finally, when he died in office, his Vice President Harry Truman took over.

After a long time the khakis are being led by a general who respects the Constitution even more than its custodians. Originally, the term of COAS was four years, which was then reduced to three. Perhaps the best way forward is to withdraw this amendment and let the chief finish the task that he has courageously embarked upon. His brother, Major Shabbir Sharif, was a fighter who laid down his life for his motherland and so did his uncle, Major Aziz Bhatti. For Sipah Sharif’s to go home without accomplishing their task will be a setback for the people who believe that sharafat is strength, not weakness, as it has turned out to be in Abba Ji’s Pakistan.